GavinO

Made a wee tote bag out of old sofa leather and upholstery

Sure, some more pics attached. Not a real gusset per se, it's just two flat panels sewn together

My first sew in a while! I am mostly happy with it, though I think I might add some sort of fusing in the flap (thin but firm) to make it a little more rigid. I think the exact positioning of the magnetic snaps is just atiny bit off which is making it stretch/warp slightly. I learned about quilting with sewfoam on this forum and I love it now, so thanks for all the help! This place really is a great resource.

ah, so the opposite of what I have been doing- oops! I will try a few tests out and see how they compare

Ah I thought I would use Tokonole first as a kind of base/to flatten the fibrous nature of the edge, let it dry, then apply edge paint. Like a primer of sorts. That's what I have been doing with the gum trag

I often find the same issue as with bevelling- the leather is a bit too thin/supple individually and I either rip it or make a messy job of it. Maybe I do need a bit more practice at it though Yeah that came up in my research. I will definitely try this as I haven't been convinced that the gum trag is really doing much

Yeah I will probably try that out, thanks.

You mean to just turn in the exposed edges? To be honest I do that most of the time/where possible, but sometimes the build up of layers can become too much and it's better to just have it stitched down flat with an exposed edge. It's for those instances that I want to find an elegant solution.

Hi, As I use old sofa leathers to make my bags, they are often chrome tanned. I am trying to find the best way to finish the edges. These leathers are mosty too supple for bevelling (will rip/not grip smoothly or properly). So I have just been cutting as clean as I can, sanding, adding gum trag, then edge painting. Burnishing in the veg tan sense doesn't seem to be so much a thing. I have watched a few youtube videos and although the description says it's about chrome tanned leather what the youtuber is using looks like veg tan and there are people calling it out in the comments. Very odd. I have been thinking about getting a handheld auto sander/burnisher, like this: https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/775700174/leather-edge-slicker-tool-sanding-and?gpla=1&gao=1&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_ca_en_ca_a-craft_supplies_and_tools-other&utm_custom1=_k_Cj0KCQjw_viWBhD8ARIsAH1mCd4xXWJzyg0-uaJAwLGUgZW_diCMgIlh9k5d6BAICF4K3GjC7vmtMmgaAu_LEALw_wcB_k_&utm_content=go_318291525_19444350045_75295133925_aud-967786719280%3Apla-106551294035_c__775700174enca_554439858&utm_custom2=318291525&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_viWBhD8ARIsAH1mCd4xXWJzyg0-uaJAwLGUgZW_diCMgIlh9k5d6BAICF4K3GjC7vmtMmgaAu_LEALw_wcB&variation0=2426933152 or a modified dremel. Maybe I could use the burnishing attachments to help with the gum trag adherement. If anybody has any experience in finishing somewhat lighter chrome tanned leathers, I am all ears! Gavin.

These look great! I love the shape. They have that rugged look that for sure work with Red Wings. Are they lined and are there internal pockets?

Ah I didn't make the basket weave, the surface has been treated to look like that, I just bought it Sadly I can't take credit for the basket weave, I just bought it like that. But yeah, I think I need to get my head aorund the smaller pieces, otherwise I don't have much of a price range

Re: lightbox, it's kind of luck. I shot it on myltiple backgrounds, with my DSLR and my phone. These are from my phone, I am doing a little course on Udemy in product photography, just downloaded lightroom for mobile and did some editing, they look a bit more vibrant now. I have a bit of a learning curve ahead of me on photography, but I am enjoying it! Yeah I seem to have approached my leather learning journey a bit back to front. Partly it's because I have focused in on using old sofa/upholstery leather to make bags, and that leather isn't right for small goods. Perhaps just for learning I should do some small goods projects, it'll probably upskill me

So, I don't really like making small goods. In that, I don't really have the skill set. They are fiddly, use different leather to what I used for bagmaking, and the best ones are hand-stitched which isn't something I (currently) do. However, I knocked this little fella out this week and while not perfect, I think he looks pretty smart. Machine stitched on my Durkopp Adler. Also been slowly learning about product photography and bought myself a lightbox, these are the inital results.

So the black and grey I posted first was my prototype I made for me, in preparation for one I am making for someone else, which is this one (a bit wilder)

@riy - wow, I'm impressed. I am exactly the other way around, machine sewing all day long but never sewn anything by hand

Lovely! Is that all hand stitched?

Hi Not the first backpack I have made but it's the first time I have made padded straps and used sew foam for quilting (on the back panel) - it is so satisfying. I am mostly happy with it but the cord pullstop is annoying me, I don't think it's strong enough. I might space out the distance between the shoulder straps too.

Oh wow that really is stunning work!

Looks great man! I really like the lining too. I am in the middle of making a backpack with the same kind of cord closure and I didn't think of using the rinser meatal pieces for holes that you have. I have bought some kinda expensive screw-ins but I like how yours has turned out!

Hi all, I am making a backpack for someone and I would like to make the straps padded with leather. I am just starting to reseatrch it now, I have some lovwly quality sewfoam that I am yet to experiment with but if anyone has any helpful or tips for this I would be very grateful. Many thanks, Gavin.

That's great you got into the craft so deeply. I studied fashion design at university and have a background in buying, but the last few years with the bags and leatherwork is the first time I have gotten really serious about mkaing things myself. I would love to know what your local sources and tips are!

Thank you! Yeah I source most of my leather from funriture upholstery. It tends to be a bit on the floppy side so it only lends itself to certain more casual styles. For smarter styles I need to back it with something or quilt or manipulate it somehow but I can only really do it to a point. I would love to look into the businesses you mentioned for research, if you don't mind naming names!

Ah yes, I need to update my profile. I was in the UK but I am actually in Montréal now, moved here in Feb 2020, got a month of normal before the world changed!

Hallo, thanks for the feedback. All the linings and leathers are excess materials sourced from furniture production. So the selection might look a little random but I have tried to pair them to be interesting. I have a background in men's formalwear and found there that men often like some crazy linings while keeping the outher of the garment more plain/simple. Re: the blue- this was actually a sofa in its previous life, that's where the seam comes from so I just tried to line it up to look clean - there is a matching one on the other side of the bag. Most of my leathers are excess from production but I do have a fair amount that have already been used, if I like the leather/colour I will use it. Some people specifically like having the old details as it tells more of a story, others prefer a clean make that looks like new, so I am going to try a bit of both and see how they do in the market. When I made these as one-offs it took me about 12 hours. I have another two to finish in this run (another purple and another red) then I am going to see if I have really managed to save time through making several at once or not (I certainly hope so, and I quite enjoyed batching little parts of the production). Pricing wise I am landing on about $400 canadian, but I still have photography/packaging and delivery logistics to work out properly so that may change. Thanks re: the straps, I sourced them from China and they are woven from 98% recycled post consumer polyester, I designed the puppytooth print. The whole process was a learning curve and took what felt like forever, but I am super happy with them now (I have another three colours in that design to use for other projects)

and this is the internal of the red I finished last week